


Red Roses and Bruised Knuckles

by orphan_account



Category: Banana Bus Squad
Genre: M/M, Multi, royal au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-14
Updated: 2017-09-16
Packaged: 2018-12-29 21:34:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,707
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12093882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Chaos was something that would run through Luke's veins, no matter what.[BBS Royal AU, tags will be updated along. Dedicated to Darius, love ya no homo.]





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sexywiddlebaby](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sexywiddlebaby/gifts).



_"I'll be the better knight, fuck off!" Luke said, jabbing his thumb onto his chest. Satt rolled his eyes, holding out his wooden sword out at Luke._   
  
_"Prove it!" Satt exclaimed._   
  
_Just before Luke could tackle Satt onto the ground, Ryan entered the area and got in between them, pushing each other away with his hands._   
  
_"Jesus Christ, you two don't stop don't you?"_   
  
_Luke scoffed, crossing his arms. Satt giggled, holding down the sword. Ryan simply shared a comforting glance at the two._   
  
_"Maybe when I'm finally King you two won't be at each others throat all day." Ryan muttered, pulling the two in a head lock._   
  
_Luke pushed Ryan away immediate, stumbling back onto his ass against the dirt of the forest they had been playing in. Luke stuck his tongue out childishly._   
  
_"Even though we're only children, just wait until I'm King and you and Luke will be the strongest knights of my kingdom." Ryan took a seat on the ground besides Luke._   
  
_The clouds passed by, the sky an ever so baby blue. Autumn was coming, and the trees were slowly dropping its dead and decaying leaves. The trio sat on the crunchy leaves, observing the clouds with smiles._   
  
_They were certainly anxious for their own future; indefinitely._   
  


* * *

  
  
_"What do you mean I cannot be a knight?" Luke spat, clenching his fists._   
  
_His knuckles were white and bruised; from his own training and fistfights he would've gotten into just to train himself. Luke gritted his teeth in frustration, his eyes filled with pure hate._   
  
_The mentor gave a hefty sigh, "My child, you cannot be a knight. Your duties do not lie here."_   
  
_"What? Is it because I'm not like any other boy — is it because I like to collect flowers and do things girls do!" Luke stomped his feet in frustration._   
  
_Tears formed at the corners of Luke's eyes, his breath shaky as he tried as best as he could to keep in all confidence in him, ignoring the anxiety that was piling into his head._   
  
_A hand was placed onto Luke's shoulder, as he immediately knew who it was._   
  
_"Luke, wait-"_   
  
_Luke turned around, slapping Satt's hand away from him. "Do not silence me." he hissed._   
  
_"I have worked years to learn under your name and now you kick me out? For merely being a little more feminine? What is exactly your problem, simply this cannot be it." Luke reverted his gaze towards his mentor._   
  
_"Luke. You are not welcomed here. From the moment you arrived, you were never welcomed. I do not wish to train a half-breed." the mentor said coldly._   
  
_Luke stood shocked, watching the mentor turn his back on him, Satt in shock. He wanted to reach out as best as he could just to even become a knight, tears slowly dropped its way off Luke's face, anger taking over him._   
  
_He spun on his heel, meekly shoving Satt aside and anyone else that had gotten in his way. Luke sobbed to himself, bumping into Ryan. He gripped onto Ryan's gray robe, digging his face into Ryan's chest._   
  
_Ryan pulled back, slightly worried, "Luke? You okay?"_   
  
_Luke looked down at his worn and tattered shoes, grimacing lightly as he took deep breaths. "I'm crying and I feel like screaming, do I look okay to you?" he muttered, his words laced with sarcasm as he ran off as far and as fast as he could from the damned kingdom that had hurt him for simply being alive._   
  
_Ryan looked back at the area Luke was once standing in, a simple red rose had fallen out of his pocket onto the paved road. He leaned over and picked it up, slightly wincing as he felt thorns prick his palm. He took another glance over at the distance Luke ran off into; worry filling him._   
  


* * *

  
  
A loud screech of a bird awakened Luke, jolting him awake as he panicked and got up immediately. Realizing it was merely a bird, he groaned and took a seat back by the tree. He brushed off snow a few leaves that had fallen onto him, pushing aside the itchy feeling on his ass.  
  
Luke glanced at the familiar mane of his trusty steed; immediately looking through his satchel and holding out a carrot. He called out his horse's name, the creature walking over and taking the carrot in his hand into her mouth sloppily. He grimaced lightly, wiping her drool onto his musky leather clothes.  
  
He smiled to himself, pushing himself up as he hopped onto the horse. "Let's go girl." Luke cooed, the horse galloping calmly galloping to god knows where.  
  
Luke gripped onto the reins of his horse, the light wind blowing his hood down as the aura around him had suddenly turned from lighthearted to a dangerous and almost mysterious vibe. The world had seemed it had dulled to Luke, but he brushed it off as he exited the forest.  
  
The breeze was slow and steady, not harsh yet still somehow brash. Adrenaline rushed through Luke as the horse galloped on faster, his previous stoic emotion being replaced by cockiness and smugness.  
  
Luke's reddish-brown eyes were focused on the path set ahead of him, his knuckles turning white from the grip he had on the horse's reipain. The amusement on his face died down as he felt himself fling off the horse, skidding against the pebble scattered dirt.  
  
"Fuck." Luke cursed, clutching at his sides and he winced at the sudden pain. He pushed himself up, slightly unsteady and shaky on his legs.  
  
He gave a stern glare at the horse who neighed at him angrily, leaving more frustration to grow in him. Luke dropped his tense posture and sighed, petting the horse's mane.  
  
"What's up with you today?" Luke murmured.  
  
Luke climbed onto the horse's back once again, this time securing himself onto the footholds and gripping onto the reins as best as he could. He huffs, the horse this time continuing on it's pace except this time much more slower. His grip on the leather rope was tight enough to leave a read mark on his wrists and palms.  
  
A loud, shrill sound of an arrow striking the tree besides Luke made him pause in slight fear. His eyes warily trailed to the source of the attack, only a mere shadow and a cape was left in his vision as the opponent dashed off in the speed he couldn't even comprehend. He straightened his posture, his mind a mess at the sudden attack.  
  
Luke cursed to him under his breath, barely audible. The horse continued its track off, heading towards the fields. By the time he had reached the tavern; it had been sunset. The sun was setting off in the horizon by the mountains, the hues blending with each other perfectly. The breeze became much more calmer, the plants and sunflowers lightly swaying in the position of the wind current.   
  
He headed into the horse shed, leaving his steed into one of the pens. Luke gave a smile as he pressed a kiss against the horse's head, leaving bucketfuls of hay in the pen. He exited the shed, stretching out his arms and joints with a loud yawn.  
  
Luke cracked his knuckles as he knocked on the tavern door, loud chatter and cheery laughter coming through muffled from the worn down wooden door. The noise died down, with footsteps getting louder -- presumably coming close to the door.  
  
"Who's there; speak your reason of being here."  
  
"Luke Patterson." he replied nonchalantly, crossing his arms.  
  
The door clicked, Craig standing in front nearly tackling Luke down in a hug. Luke grinned as he wrapped his arms around Craig as well, who was euphoric. Luke could feel his blouse being stained from Craig's tears, who was silently sobbing into his chest. A few minutes they had stayed like that, in the moonlight hugging each other.  
  
Craig pulled away, his face ever so radiant. Luke wrapped one of his arms around Craig's shoulders, the two entering into the tavern bar. All of Luke's friends had been waiting for him, each with a delighted look on their face as they ran up and tackled Luke down. Luke lets out a cheery chuckle, regaining his posture as he patted dust off him.  
  
"Okay, okay, sappy stuff over." Luke held his hands up, shrugging as he took a seat by the bar.  
  
Bryce slapped Luke's back, offering a welcoming smile, "Oh please, we haven't seen you in months, let's be a little positive can't we?"  
  
Luke took the drink that was handed to him by Craig, taking a long sip. He slammed the glass back down, redirecting his attention back to Bryce. "Why the fuck not?"  
  
Brian strummed his guitar, with Scotty tapping the sole of his boots against the wooden floor. A beat was formed, almost melodic and memorizable. David starting humming along the tune, each second in perfect harmony.  
  
Luke glanced over at Craig, holding his hand out over to him, "A dance, maybe?" Craig looked away, his face reddening. He parted his fingers, letting Luke pull him close and spin him around.  
  
The others paired up and danced, each tipsy in their own way. The melody blurred out in Craig's ears, his attention only focused on the joyful Luke.   
  
His smile was magnificent, something that would always make you believe in yourself. Craig picked up all of Luke's traits while they lived together through the years, others would've found it creepy but Craig himself found it interesting.  
  
Craig felt his heart pound a little more each time he saw Luke's smile and his beautiful eyes, but Craig always knew something; this was a simple infatuation. He only craved for the attention, not for the love from him.  
  
Craig pushed back all negative emotions, letting Luke guide him through the bar as they wobbled and danced around. Luke pulled Craig into a dip, leaving Craig slightly breathless as they stared into each others eyes.  
  
Time stopped for them, the music pausing as the chatter quit. All movement from anyone else other than the duo ceased, their only focus was into each others eyes. Their faces closened, their lips nearly brushing against each other.  
  
Craig would've never forgotten the glimmer of hope in Luke's eyes, radiant as ever. Color as dark as blood, yet still somehow warm and welcoming. There was something about Luke that had Craig snatched on, that one little thing that made him sucha hopeless romantic.  
  
He gripped onto Luke's hand tighter, as time started abruptly and he could hear the loud chatter and laughter once again. Luke only flashed a bright smile over at Craig, who pulled him close to his chest.  
  
Craig was as red as he could be already, and such close contact didn't help at all. Craig looked up over at Luke, who glanced down.  
  
The next words he muttered, he knew was a mistake.  
  
"I love you, but you'll forget and I know I'll never be as good as Ryan was in your life."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> implied smut / slight sexual scene, skip thru if ya don't like ;(  
> && sorry for the late update, my wifi has been fuckin up a lot n it's hard to just even open google let alone ao3.  
> enjoy :]

Luke groggily awoken, his eyes parted as he took time to adjust to the rays of the sun that beamed through the window. He closed his eyes once again, letting out a tired huff. A hot breath against his neck made him awaken, as he jumped a little. He looked observed the figure on his lap who was dozing off against his chest, who was Craig.

Panicking, Luke nudged Craig little by little to wake him up, As each attempt came off as a failure, Luke rolled his eyes as he pinched the skin on Craig's neck. Instinctively, Craig slapped Luke as hard as he could and fell off his lap onto the bed.

"Jesus Christ, Craig!"

The two shared eye contact, confusion rushing through their heads.

"Did we...?" Craig cut himself off, holding his breath as we awaited the answer.

"Keep on holding your breath until I answer and I won't even bother to answer." Luke said, rolling his eyes as he pushed himself off the bed. "We aren't naked, so most likely no."

Craig looked out at the doorway, avoiding Luke's stare. "Do you remember anything from last night?"

"Not at all." Luke brushed his hair in front of the mirror, pulling off his blouse.

Craig dropped his tense posture, heaving a sigh of relief. He got up and changed into a new pair of clothes alongside Luke, the two heading down at the same time which gave stares from the other people who had worked alongside them in the tavern.

"What?" Luke quipped, furrowing his eyebrows. "Before you all ask, no we did not fuck."

Brian nodded suspiciously, taking a sip of his apple cider. He resumed his talk with David.

Craig watched as Luke took a seat by the bar, frustration growing in him. By impulse, he ran out the tavern and ignored all yells at him out of worry, going as far as he could. He ignored the stinging pain on the soles of his worn out shoes, his breath heavy as he headed into the forest.

Craig stopped, collapsing onto the dirt on his knees. He felt tears slide off his paled cheeks, his head violently churning. Craig ran his hand through his hair, sobbing at the own mess that he was. Destructive thoughts ran through his head, chanting over and over. Craig gripped at his hair, resisting the urge to pull strands out as vivid memories came past by his head.

He felt the insides of his body twist, most likely from the intense amount of alcoholic beverages he had drank last night. His head was pounding, his vision blurring as the birds chirping started to cut off in his head. Anxiety rose in Craig, as he felt himself grip onto a rough pebble. In frustration, Craig tossed the pebble at a squirrel passing by, hitting it square in the head.

"Oh fuck," Craig muttered, remorse in his tone as he crawled over to the unconscious yet twitching squirrel that he had hit.

Craig bit his lip as he looked around, making sure no other human living being was around him. "Animari." Craig murmured, casting a hex onto the animal. The squirrel twitched lightly, before getting up and climbing onto Craig's shoulder.

"Huh, never knew you were a spell caster."

Craig jumped, instinctively getting up and slapping the figure that stood beside him as best as he could. The figure stumbled back, leaning over as they placed a hand to their red cheek.

Craig took a second glance at the person, before seeing it was merely Bryce. "Sorry Bryce, just a habit." Bryce chuckled, taking a seat besides Craig on the dirt that had leaves scattered around.

"You never told us you were a spellcaster." Bryce repeated, looking over at Craig.

Craig wiped away his tears and nodded, "My spells aren't for violence although. They're mostly healing."

Bryce 'ooh-ed' and 'ah-ed', slight curiosity growing in him. "Last night, when you said you loved Luke, did you mean it -- and who the hell is Ryan?"

Craig flinched at their names, as he dug his fingers into his wrist. "I did, but he'd never love me back as he did with Ryan. Ryan's no one of importance, to me anyways." He sighed, leaning his head onto Bryce's chest.

"Craig..." Bryce started on.

"What is it?"

Bryce avoided Craig's gaze, "I have a little something for you to forget about your emotions for Luke." Bryce held out a small vile from his coat, placing it in Craig's hand.

The liquid in it was purple, slightly glimmering and ooze like. Craig sighed, "Will this really make me forget my dumb emotions?"

Bryce nodded, popping out the cork out of the vile for Craig. Craig gave a worried look at the vile, before looking back at Bryce. "I don't think this is a good ide-"

Bryce gripped at Craig's chin, holding the vile against his lips. "Drink it, now." Craig tried to push away, but felt his body being restrained by Bryce's hands. Craig swatted his hands around, desperately trying to push Bryce away.

"Drink it, right fucking now!" Bryce yelled, raising his voice.

Craig muttered something under his breath, looking over at the squirrel and nodding as he drank the vile to the very last drop. The liquid was sickeningly sweet, feeling like syrup down his throat.

Craig looked back at Bryce who was standing, something behind his body. Fear rushed throughout Craig as he pushed himself up, trying to sprint away. He felt Bryce's grip on the hem of his shirt, lifting him up to face him.

Craig's eyes widened as he saw something he had never seen in the usual, sweet and kind Bryce.

Malice and mischievousness.

"Sleep tight, Craig."

Craig felt himself being thrown against a tree, clutching his sides as red tinted his vision. He felt himself coughing out mass amounts of blood, his eyes drooping unconscious. And within a few minutes, Craig laid there barely breathing.

Bryce fixed his sleeves, scoffing. "That was surprisingly easy. Let's go for David next, shall we?" He chuckled coldly to himself, exiting out the forest as calmly as he could.

 

* * *

 

Ryan sat upon his chair, papers scattered on his desk alongside scrolls. Books were stacked upon on the floor beside him, drops of ink splattered across the wooden fixture. On the very corner, nearly peering over the edge was a white vase with roses painted onto it. In it was one dying rose, already wilted and dried out.

Sighing, Ryan jotted down his signature onto the scroll that was a petition of sort for an orphan to be adopted. His handwriting grew sloppier and sloppier within each paper. Ryan took a glance at the spell book, murmuring the spell to himself over and over under his breath to memorize it. "Puso meron," he said to himself, looking over at the plant.

The rose slowly came alive, its wrinkled petals now flattening and becoming its state as it was mere years ago. Ryan smiled to himself for a quick second, before returning to signing petitions and writing down notes.

Ryan dipped the tip of the feather in ink, but rather instead of jotting down the things of up most importance, he doodled down simple drawings. A simply circle turned into a head, a head and a cloak with a grin on it's face. He propped himself on his elbow, leaning against it as he continued drawing on a scrapped piece of paper.

A knock on the door snapped Ryan out of his tired haze, as he cleared his throat. "Come in."

The door creaked as Lucas peeked from the side, awaiting for Ryan's notice. "Lucas! I missed you." Ryan said, smiling as he got up and opened his arms out for Lucas. Lucas smiled back, taking steps forward as he hugged his lover. Ryan ran his fingers through Lucas' soft hair, enjoying the scent of a flower field on him.

Lucas wrapped his arms around Ryan's waist, resting his head against Ryan's chest. The two stood there, enjoying each others company.

"I love you." Lucas said, pushing himself on the tip of his toes as he pressed a kiss against Ryan's lips. Lucas smile grew into a grin, as his hands moved down into the hem of Ryan's pants.

Ryan's breath was shaky as he looked down at Lucas, anticipation in his eyes, "You're heading into dark waters Lucas."

"I know I am." Lucas fumbled with Ryan's pants.

Ryan chuckled, taking a seat onto his chair as he pulled Lucas down onto his lap. He pressed a kiss against Lucas' exposed neck, moving up to his jawline. His cold hand climbed under Lucas' shirt, leaving him slightly squirming under the sudden cold touch. Lucas bucked his hips against Ryan, moaning as quiet as he could.

"Let's have some fun today."

Satt stood out the door, a tray of food in his hand. His decisions to visit the King was utterly not at the right time, as a muffled moan came through the door. He gagged to himself, doing his best to keep the thought out of his head. Spinning on his heel, he gripped onto the tray and headed back to his own quarters.

Satt entered his room, taking a seat on the bed. He took a slice of bread, taking small bites as he rested against the wood-board frame. He thought about his plans for today, taking out a small journal. He ripped out a page, quickly writing down a note to the King for a short absence to visit his lover.

He left the rest of the food aside by the window sill, for any birds who wanted to snack on some bread. Heading out his room, he slid the note under the door as he pushed back the sounds of muffled repetitive moaning from the couple behind the door.

Icky, he immediately left the castle as soon as he could.

 

* * *

 

_The blade felt like flames when it struck upon his chest. The stinging was the only thing he felt, as he felt himself collapse onto his knees against the blood covered bricks. The blood rushed out his throat, gagging as he felt the blade being pulled out of his body. The hole which was once filled with a cold blade was now empty and bleeding, his insides churning. His head throbbed, his vision darkening. All screams were blurring out in his ears, only replaced by loud ringing._

_His eyes glanced around, looking over at the man who had decided to seal his faith once and for all. The man only gave a stern glare, no remorse or guilt in his face. Almost emotionless._

_Terror struck him as he saw the man lift a spiked mace over his head, his clothes stained in blood as his hands were gripped onto the weapon tightly. His body trembled out of fear._

_And with a quick, sharp, swing, he could feel the world blacking out and the last thing in his head were the constant, grim laughter of the man who ended it all, the man who stole his happiness and the man who killed him._

_"Rynx, let's go. We have no time." the man said, leaving the mace stuck into the corpse's beaten and bleeding head._

_Rynx nodded under his hood, "Purpura ignis." he said under his breath, gripping onto the blade that hung on his weaponry belt out of instinct._

_"Shall we, Dark Lord?"_

_"We shall."_

Jonathan shot up from his poor posture on his desk, slightly panicking at the vivid dream. Paranoia fueled him. Jonathan ran his hand through his messy hair, heaving a big sigh. He readjusted the crown on his head, looking down at his empty desk. He had already done most of his own work, but now he had nothing to do.

"Ineuntes." he huffed, crossing his arms as he slouched onto the desk. A scroll rolled out, alongside a quill and ink bottle.

Reading over the note, he bit his lip Little bits of frustration grew in him, as he jotted down his response sloppily. He rolled the scroll back up, leaving it off to the side.

Jonathan glanced over the gem that was placed upon an altar, which was decorated with crystals and flowers of sort. He pushed himself up, walking over to the altar as he glanced at the photo in a frame in the center of the altar, the gem right beside it. 

He took hold of the gem, precisely balancing it on the tip of this thumb and pointer finger. The gem was a simple, reddish-purple colored beauty, each crevice perfectly sharpened. Now all he needed was a perfect staff that could withstand the gems power -- and he'd have reign over all lands.

Jonathan chuckled to himself, placing the gem back without a care. He pulled away from the altar, heading back to look out his window. Hundreds of townspeople were gathered, shops sprawled everywhere of sort. Kids ran around, playing games with each other. Jonathan opened the window, taking a seat by the edge.

His legs peered over, dangling off the edge.

"King, not again! You'll fall!"

Jonathan looked down, as he saw a furious Tyler. He laughed at Tyler, leaning over to tease him. "What are you gonna do about it?" he stuck his tongue out, making Tyler much more angry.

He watched Tyler curse, before disappearing in thin air. Jonathan snickered to himself, placing a hand over his mouth.

"Hey fucker."

Jonathan flinched, losing hold onto the windowsill as he leaned over the edge, a grip on the back of his hood to keep him from falling off. Jon turned his head to see a not very amused Tyler who was holding the hood of Jon's cloak tightly in his gloved hand.

Tyler yanked onto the fabric, letting go as Jonathan stumbled over onto the ground head first. "I'm heading off to visit a tavern, your majesty." Tyler bowed, a monotone look on his face as he headed out the room.

Jonathan pouted, pushing himself up with a flip. His head hits against the desk, slightly stumbling around in dizziness. "Reminder to never do a flip when I'm near my desk." he said to himself, his head pounding.

Tyler was now snickering as he observed Jonathan's wobbling figure through a crack between the door. He turned away, making his walk towards one of his favorite go-to taverns.

 

* * *

 

Tyler arrived to The Jaded Tavern, entering the tavern. He took a seat by the bar, glancing over at the bartender. "Hey, sir -- I would like the strongest you got."

Luke looked over at Tyler, a grin on his face. "That's expensive, you know? Are you sure?" Luke placed down the chalice he was drying with a towel, moving his attention to Tyler's stoic gaze.

"Yes I'm sure," Tyler reconfirmed, placing down pouches of coins onto the bar counter.

Luke stood aback in shock, the amount of money that he had placed down was nearly enough to have a stable, rich life. Luke bit onto his lip, nodding as he took the pouches of money and headed into the storage room. "He's gonna have a death wish for wanting to drink something so strong." he grumbled to himself, picking out a bottle of Everclear from the slots. He returned back out, placing the bottle down with a sweet smile.

"Here you go sir."

Tyler nodded, popping off the cork oh so easily as he took a long swig of the strong beverage. He leaned onto the counter onto his elbow, his blank expression turning much more relaxed. Luke went back to drying glasses and mugs, with Brian, David and Bryce in the back singing and playing music. Luke tapped his feet against the ground to the beat.

Luke looked back at Tyler, who had downed nearly half the bottle in less than ten minutes. Tyler was definitely intoxicated, his face red and an idiotic grin on his face. Tyler reached his hand out over the counter, reaching for Luke's ass. Luke slightly flinched, looking over at a tipsy Tyler.

"Hm?"

Tyler pulled Luke closer, pressing a sloppy kiss against Luke's lips. Luke could taste the strong alcohol on Tyler's lips, slightly wincing. Luke looked back at Brian, who gave a thumbs up and a cheeky smile as he motioned his hands upstairs.

Luke rolled his eyes, pulling away from the kiss as he held Tyler's wrist, dragging him upstairs. Hopefully someone else would take over.

Tyler pushed Luke down onto the bed, connecting their lips once again. Tyler's hand traveled in the inside of Luke's thighs. Tyler gripped onto Luke's tie, pulling it closer to his body as Luke's lips were pressed against Tyler's much more harder.

Luke tugged down Tyler's pants, along with his. The two pulled away, the sexual tension between them high as the air became much more warmer. Luke groaned as Tyler's fingers brushed against the tightening in his boxers, Tyler's cold hands rubbing against his warm body. Luke felt his body shiver as Tyler pulled off his boxers, his cold and calloused fingers.

A grin grows on Tyler's face, "How cute, the infamous half-breed breaking under my touch."

Luke scoffed, "A famous second in command from the demon kingdom preforming sinful duties with a dirty half-breed? Impeccable." he retorted back. "Be thankful for this, I'll need a payment other than money."

"If you're saying give you hints of our plan then I shall, as long as _you_ repay me back." Tyler chuckled grimly.

Luke rolled his eyes, pulling Tyler down as they connected their lips once again.

 

* * *

 

 

Downstairs, Satt entered the tavern, The first to notice was Bryce, who jumped from his seat and pushed by other drunk people to give his lover a hug. The two reminisced each others presence, as Bryce nuzzled his head into the crook of Satt's neck.

"I missed you." Satt said, pressing a kiss against Bryce's forehead.

Bryce giggled, "Let's go somewhere else rather than this filled and noisy bar."

Satt nodded, taking Bryce's hands in his. The two exited the tavern, straying quite far from the tavern. The two walked under the moonlight, recapturing moments and having chatter about what they've been up to. As their path derived towards the entrance of the forest, Bryce looked back at Satt. "Maybe we shouldn't visit the forest, maybe we could go down the lake, d-don't you think?" Bryce suggested, trying his best to cover up the entrance of the forest as he remembered Craig's body was somewhere in there.

"Don't overreact Bryce, just hold my hand if you're scared of the forest." Satt chuckled, taking hold of Bryce's hand once again.

Bryce looked to the side in frustration, Satt was quite stubborn. Bryce followed after Satt, who took a slow pace throughout the thick forest. "Surge ignis." Satt chanted, holding out his other pointer finger as a small flame grew. The forest was slightly illuminated now, clearer to their visions.

_'Just my luck, he knows fire spells. I might as well kill him right now -- but he's my only way to the damned human kingdom.'_ Bryce thought to himself, gritting his teeth.

A small creature hopped onto Satt's shoulder, startling the knight. Satt looked to the side as he saw a squirrel, a cute on in fact. Bryce looked over at Satt, gasping to himself as he saw the same squirrel that had witnessed Craig's body that flung into a tree.

Uneasiness settled into Bryce, as the squirrel hopped off Satt's shoulder and onto the dirt path, motioning Satt to follow the animal. Being quite gullible, Satt released his grip on Bryce's hand as he followed the tiny animal deeper into the forest. Bryce held his fingers to his temples, sighing in annoyance as he knew it was inevitable that the damn animal would lead him to Craig.

Deciding to play along, Bryce jogged after Satt who was quite far already by himself. Bryce secured the dagger that was hoisted onto his weaponry belt, just for simple precautions.

"JESUS CHRIST, BRYCE-!" Satt yelled.

Bryce flinched at the sudden change of voice, as he looked over at Satt's place. Terror struck through him, as he felt his soul diverge and emptiness filled him.

Vines were entangled into Craig's corpse, flowers sprouting from his mouth. Blood stained the petals that came from his throat, his eyes rolled back and partly lidded. His body was twisted in the worst way possible, the grass around him decaying. Satt was on his knees, observing every inch of Craig's corpse.

Bryce wanted to look away, but as much as he wanted to -- he couldn't. His eyes made contact with the corpses sheer white eyes, fear striking into Bryce. Satt felt small tears fall off his cheeks, his barely audible sobbing was the only thing that could be heard during the late night.

Bryce looked down at his hands, violently twitching as guilt immersed in him. His eyes hallucinated the blood on his palms, bright red and dripping off the edge. Satt took a moment from his cry session to glance over at Bryce, who was on the ground -- clutching at his hair with tears forming down his face. Bryce swore over and over under his breath, barely audible.

"We'll find out who did this Bryce, and when we do I'll kill them with no remorse."

_'No remorse, no remorse, no remorse...'_ the words rung over and over in Bryce's head, his eyes widening.

If Satt pieced together everything, it would be the **end** of Bryce's plan. He had to make it work, he had to make sure Satt wouldn't know. He couldn't disobey the Dark Lord now, especially when their plant was going so well and so far.

Bryce swallowed the bile growing at the back of his clothes, wiping his tears away with his sleeve. "Bring his body to the castle, I know how to handle this but I don't have the right items available for me back at the tavern."

Satt nodded, sniffling a little. Bryce crawled closer to the corpse, taking out his weapon, The blade hit against the vines, with Satt tugging it away. Satt held the corpse over his shoulder, ushering Bryce to follow him.

Bryce couldn't back out now, he had one chance to kill the human king now and he'd never waste it for anything.

 

* * *

 

"Dark Lord, Bryce McQuaid is close to completing his mission. Perhaps its time for me to w-"

The Dark Lord clicked his tongue, rolling his eyes with a shrug. He slouched against his throne.

"What's the fun in attacking them so directly when you can mess up their heads and make them lose their sanity little by little until the war starts and they're broken by the bones?"

Rynx stood back, "Holy shit you're some sort of sadistic monster."

"Hm," the Dark Lord snickered grimly, malice in his tone. "Maybe I am, after all being exiled from a kingdom you've grown up in can mess with your mind."

The Dark Lord tossed a throwing knife into the wooden board, slightly startling Rynx.

"Sometimes, losing all empathy in your heart can be a good thing."

 


End file.
